Revolutionizing the diagnosis of irreversible pulpitis – Current strategies and future directions

Pulpitis primarily arises from the pulp space infection by oral microbiota. Vital pulp therapy is a minimally invasive approach that relies on assessing the severity of pulpal inflammation to facilitate repair. However, the current evaluation methods prescribed by the American Association of Endodontics are subjective, leading to ambiguity in assessment. Therefore, this review aims to explore molecular strategies for evaluating the severity of pulpal inflammation to accurately predict the success of pulp vitality preservation in clinical settings. This review was conducted by searching relevant keywords, such as irreversible pulpitis, pulpitis biomarkers, molecular diagnosis, inflammation, and genomic strategies, in databases such as PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus to address the subjective nature of diagnosis. The data included in this review were collected up to April 2023. The literature search revealed well-documented limitations in clinically assessing the pulp inflammatory. Molecular approaches that aid in clinical differentiation between irreversible and reversible pulpitis may potentially enhance favorable outcomes in vital pulp therapy. Non-invasive diagnostic methods for pulpal assessment would also be valuable for determining whether the inflamed pulp is reversible, irreversible, or necrotic. This review examines the various molecular diagnostic approaches that have revolutionized the medical field and are considered the most promising empirical methodologies for the proactive detection of pulpal diseases. This review provides comprehensive insights into the current diagnostic methods, associated challenges, next-generation strategies, and future directions for diagnosing the severity of pulp inflammation.